D’Angelico Excel Style-B vs. D’Angelico Excel EXL-1 | D’Angelico Guitars

Struggling to choose between the D'Angelico Excel Style-B and EXL-1? This video is perfect for you! We dive into the features, tones, playability, and price points of these two stunning archtop guitars to create your ultimate showdown guide! The D’Angelico archtops have not been modified in any way and have the factory strings. We play them directly into a mixing board to eliminate any tone from an amp.
Chapters:
00:00 Cold Open
00:37 Introduction & Pickups
2:05 Other Design Differences
5:52 D’Angelico Excel Style B - Acoustic Sound
6:16 Acoustic Version of “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
7:12 “Cookin’” - D’Angelico Excel Style B
9:26 Thoughts on the D’Angelico Excel Style B tone
10:23 Thoughts on Archtops with Cutaways
11:15 D’Angelico Excel EXL-1 Acoustic Version of “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
12:20 ’Angelico Excel EXL-1 - Acoustic Sound
13:04 “Cookin’” - D’Angelico Excel EXL-1
15:23 Overall Thoughts
19:49 Outro
See our full reviews below on both of these D’Angelico guitars:
D'Angelico Excel Style B Review | DeArmond Pickup vs Guild Artist Award: kzbin.infoaMMQdjQdQ9M
D'Angelico Excel EXL-1 Review | D'Angelico Archtop Review - Johnny Smith Floater:
• D'Angelico Excel EXL-1...
D’Angelico Excel EXL-1 Review - Design Updated!! Single Humbucker Version | D’Angelico Guitars: kzbin.infooYZvDe353eA
About the Excel Style B:
A faithful replica of John D'Angelico's rhythm-focused archtop and go-to model throughout the 1930's, the Style B is an old-school non-cutaway archtop embodying the spirit of New York City jazz. With a 24.75" scale length and only 20 frets, the Style B is easy to wield and offers naturally rich, mellow tone.
Read More Here: dangelicoguitars.com/guitars/...
About the Excel EXL-1
Inspired by John D'Angelico's legendary New Yorker model, the Excel EXL-1 offers woody, articulate tone, ideal for both rhythm and lead playing. The model in this video features a Johnny Smith Floating Mini-bucker on the new Amber finish, offering a woody, focused tone that prioritizes body top resonance.
Read More Here: dangelicoguitars.com/guitars/...
Mixing Board Used: Mackie ProFX16v3 16-channel Mixer with USB and Effects:
mackie.com/en/products/mixers...
Tracks Made Using ‘Band In A Box’: www.pgmusic.com/
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All Rich's song lessons with video, PDF and tracks are available at GuitarCollegeLibrary. com
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[@johnnyjohnson6273]

I’ll go for the style B. My playing doesn’t need a cutaway. Plus the 3 tone burst is beautiful. Good stuff. Thanks for sharing.

[@pnojazz]

Everything sounds super sweet with Rich’s fingers!😂

[@jazzguitar72]

I am fond of both guitars. Choosing between them is difficult, as your proficiency and abilities make them each sound even more exceptional.

[@larrylorenzen2449]

I have an old EXL-1 where I replaced the mini HB with a Rhythm Chief 2000 and it has a sweet tone and looks vintage to boot!

[@GordonZoot]

Great to hear a non-cutaway guitar, I really like that style-B. It looks beautiful and you show that it can produce lovely music.

[@lunastrat]

I like the Style B. I also prefer the look of the head stock.

[@pnojazz]

I prefer the tone of the B Rich! Otherwise I’d take the Humbucker exl-1

[@user-rg6yf2cu9n]

Informative video. It’s possible that I have enough archtops, but listening to your excellent playing makes me think one of these might find a home in my herd.

[@user-vu3ns3kx7e]

Absolutely 👍👌🎸

[@danhusband6154]

I want the EXL-1 soooooooo bad

[@valtercirio3623]

Excel EXL for me ❤👍👏👏👏👍❤

[@bandit4915]

Enjoyed hearing the 2 New D'Angelicos...Thank you Rich. I have a '98 Japanese Vestax NYL2 that I love which the NXL-1 sounds most like . Just picked up a new D'Angelico DC Mini which is having the pickups changed out to Seth Lovers. Can't believe the quality that they are putting out for the price. P.S Was looking for a little more of your expert feedback after playing these 2 Gems but I understand. Just turned 75 last week myself.

[@mrkrud]

re the cutaway tone, do you still have that Guild Savoy with the rhythm chief pickup in it? would make another great comparison with the B style

[@charleshuguley9323]

I much prefer the headstock on the style b to the monstrosity on the style a. Also like the 24 3/4" scale. Price-wise, these might compete with the Eastman 503 ce. A point in favor if the D'Angelicos is the 1 11/16" nut width, compared to 1 3/4" on the Eastman, in my estimation.

[@garycoates4987]

Personally I prefer a non-cutaway in most cases, I have a gretsch G-400 acoustic that I added a benedetto pickup to it, I believe that Japanese factory that makes the high end gretsch used to make the D'Angelico guitars prior to the current manufacturer. I just really love the look of this one and that rhythm chief pickup sounds so good especially with the room mike.

[@PhillipJ]

I’ve got the cutaway version in VS for about 5 years now. Great guitar for the money, well crafted, nice sound decent electronics.

[@RichSeversonGuitar]

Thanks for the comment, Phillip! Impressive builds for the price, for sure! Glad yours is getting plenty of use all these years!

[@JurajHalaska]

Excel ss soho review please

[@tombrian2529]

Liked both, cutaway is more curvaceous, both sounded good amplified. Personally I prefer the sound of acoustic jazz chords on a Martin D-28. btw cutaway seems good for getting some chords on Rich's Rhythm Guitar course

[@surfgod509]

if you admire Johnny Smith's playing quite a few of his older tracks were done with original D Angelico's and he actually knew John D. personally.....

[@adriennelee1520]

I do like the Blonde one better.. sounds smoother and more musical to me.. thanks guys.

[@chadwicks_guitar]

I have been thinking pretty hard about buying the EXL-1, but it’s impossible to get my hands on one to try it out. So, it will be an online purchase. Before pulling the trigger, I want your opinion on the neck. Is it thinner like an Ibanez or thicker like a vintage Gibson? There is a bit of arthritis in my fingers, so thinner is better. Thank you again for the great content. ❤

[@RichSeversonGuitar]

I hope to start selling them the necks are on the thinner side

[@donnymac575]

Appreciate the reduced length video. Those 3 plus hour ones are hard to get into.

[@RichSeversonGuitar]

Hey Donny! The livestream replay videos usually are 2 hours long. We start the show an hour early and let the stream sit on a graphic for an hour before so we can send an email with the link to my students. I have been trying to edit the hour-long graphic out to get right to the start. Thanks for watching! Hopefully you can join us live one day. We go live every Thursday at 11:00 am PDT. If you're able to join... make sure to say hi in the chat!

[@dananthony6258]

I like the color and pickup style better on the non cutaway but tone and body style of the cutaway better. I think I like the tone of the cutaway guitar better but you can probably move the pickup and get it to change on the full body.

[@To.Si.Ma.]

the cutaway duderinho!

[@RichSeversonGuitar]

Hey ToSiMa! Thanks for watching! Hope you're getting to see lots of great jazz over in Berlin!

[@To.Si.Ma.]

This year I already signed up for Rotem Sivan, John McLaughlin, Robben Ford, Marcus King and Walter Trout. Jazz and Blues are two sides of a coin to me. Hopefully I can watch Julian Lage - You must check the record "Speak to me". @@RichSeversonGuitar

[@diogenio]

I hear a raspy, “fuzzy” distortion on the cutaway model. It’s very prevalent. I wonder if the higher pickup output on the cutaway was overdriving your mixer?

[@RichSeversonGuitar]

That is definitely what happened there. Wes had it up too high, unfortunately :(

[@diogenio]

@@RichSeversonGuitar funny that more people don't notice this!

[@eohippusone]

B Style pickup is the "monkey on a stick" right? To my ear, it sounds pleasantly old school. Chris Flory put a model 1100 on his Gibson L7. T'was good enough for Benny Goodman!

[@jeffd8597]

I like a style B better. the EXL-1 was good too but generic. I have a 1948 national non-cut away which I believe is manufactured by Gibson back then no truss rod with a Kent Armstrong P90/dearmond sound pick up and it’s the long scale but it really sounds incredible but it’s hard to play and I’m getting up there in years. too. I prefer the 24 and three-quarter but it’s hard to find a big guitar with that scale.

[@dananthony6258]

I wonder if les paul used flatwounds .

[@surfgod509]

most guitars in those days came with them? but with Les Paul anything is possible?

[@freddymclain]

If John saw those he'd 'laugh out loud.'

[@michaelsantiago6887]

Hah! Get a Mandolin! I concur doctor!

[@lunastrat]

Style B sounds more vintage.

[@herroglop7411]

The B Style sounds better acoustically and worse plugged in , in my opinion.

[@tombrian2529]

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